Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
A carbon tax is going into effect next week in South Africa
In a bid to drive down emissions and spur the transition to clean energy in South Africa, the country has joined a list of about 40 countries worldwide to adopt a carbon-pricing program. The first phase of the carbon tax will run until December 2022 and will go into effect next. Under the Read More...
This high-tech wood reflects sunrays and keeps homes cool
Conventional construction materials used for building our homes are most often inefficient. Cooling our houses during the warm season, for instance, usually requires a staggering amount of energy and associated carbon emissions. In an attempt to find a solution to this, scientists at the University Read More...
Why Hawaii is now the perfect place to test hydrogen-powered public transport
Hydrogen power has long been hailed for its potential to revolutionize transportation, and yet, widespread adoption of the clean fuel still feels like some sort of distant dream that we’re not getting closer to. Now some proponents insist that this magical-seeming alternative fuel is ready for Read More...
Study: reducing screen time for teens at night can help them sleep better
If your teenage son or daughter is struggling to sleep at night, their smartphones may very well be the cause of it. According to a new study out of the Netherlands, it’s not just the screens that make it difficult to sleep, but the particular hue of the blue glow they admit. To test the Read More...
Scientists come up with a more effective way of desalinizing water for drinking
While the human population continues to grow, the seepage of salt into freshwater systems is reducing access to drinkable water across the globe. In the U.S. alone, the U.S. Geological Survey estimates that about 272 metric tons of dissolved solids, including salts, enter freshwater streams per Read More...
The newest wind turbines will have blades longer than football fields
When it comes to wind turbines, bigger is better. Bigger turbines harvest more energy, more steadily; the bigger they get, the less variable and more reliable they get, and the easier they are to integrate into the wind. The wind is already outcompeting other sources of the wholesale energy market. Read More...
Delivery giant UPS is going all in on natural biogas made from waste sources
The e-commerce sector is growing at a fast pace, which means its associated carbon emissions is also rising rapidly. This also means that delivery companies such as DHL and UPS are under increasing pressure to figure out ways to reduce those emissions and to ultimately decarbonize. This week, it Read More...
Chatting with your baby is a simple way to boost their intelligence
The next time you see a parent chatting with their drooling baby, don’t think of them as crazy, Instead, think of them simply as smart parents! According to new research from the University of York, the number of words a child hears doesn’t just improve their vocabulary and linguistic Read More...
These self-driving mini cars communicate together to improve traffic flow
Self-driving cars withhold the promise of making our roadways safer while improving traffic flow. But before autonomous cars can hit our roads, they first need to learn how to communicate with each other better. That’s why a research team at the University of Cambridge has developed a fleet of Read More...
Flying cars could be great for the environment. Here’s why
While it’s hard to know whether “flying cars” will ever become a commercial reality, they could help solve a major climate problem. Aviation, which makes up about 2 percent of global carbon emissions, will be one of the hardest parts of the economy to decarbonize. Lilium, a German startup Read More...